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Dr. Pineda on VP Leni: You can't fake social graces, they come from genuine concern

University of the Philippines' Doctor Ethel Pineda on her Facebook account condemned Vice President Leni Robredo, claiming that "social graces" which she speaks of, cannot be faked but must come out of genuine concern for others.

Because "social graces," good manners and right conduct fail as mere veneers. You can't fake them. They are manifestations of genuine concern for people," Pineda said.

"Social grace is not making chika, pa-cute, sugar-coating words that ingratiate. It is knowing what is right, and acting on it without calling attention to one's self," she added.

The doctor said that it is not about walking barefoot in the mountains or waiting for a bus where there is no proper bus stop, or leaving one's hometown before a storm hits for a family reunion abroad.

She said some would call it dereliction.

Pineda brought up President Rodrigo Duterte as a comparison.

"President Duterte is rough, uncouth, bastos? That is not what the lumads think. Not the victims of Yolanda. Not the farmers who will get free irrigation. Not the women who will be relieved from the burden of conceiving more children than they can take care of and what their bodies can bear. Not the people who live in constant fear of the drug monsters in their neighborhood," she said.

She said social grace is knowing one's proper place and avoiding the urge to covet power and plot for someone else's failure, as well as honoring the people's will.

Pineda said Robredo should first examine herself before asking for respect, as the VP has been vocal about her disappointments towards President Duterte.

Robredo has recently been asked to leave the Duterte Cabinet by the President himself and has been uninvited to his first Vin D'Honneur, both of which she has expressed disappointment and resentment towards.

"Ms. Robredo should take a good look at herself before she demands respect. Her followers should stop short changing themselves. They've stumbled into a fool's gold. Tanso," she said.